


everyone else in the room can see it

by glitterlarries



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Kissing, M/M, No Angst, Reality TV AU, gogglebox AU, theyre just friends on TV together and theyre very obviously in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-02
Updated: 2016-04-02
Packaged: 2018-05-30 16:27:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6431764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glitterlarries/pseuds/glitterlarries
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>"At least they don’t think either of us is straight, I reckon I’d feel like a complete failure if my gay aura didn’t translate onto the TV,” Louis comments, not sure what else to say.</i>
</p>
<p> <i>“Our flamboyance transcends.” Harry replies, nodding wisely.</i></p>
<p> <i>Neither mention the fact that the viewers all seem to think they’re together. </i></p>
<p> or</p>
<p>Best friends Harry and Louis are filmed watching TV together for a show on Channel 4 and the viewers realise they're in a relationship before they do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	everyone else in the room can see it

**Author's Note:**

> If you don't know what Gogglebox is, it's a Channel 4 show where they film friends, couples, or families watching TV together in their own homes. It sounds like an awful idea for a show but it's actually really good.

Their first episode’s been airing for around twenty minutes now, and Louis’ proud and flattered about how much screen time the producers have given to he and Harry, his best friend. He can see why, to be honest, as he finds himself giggling at their jokes and comments from a couple of days ago, as he observes their easy and fun dynamic from a twisted kind of outsider’s perspective. They’re good together, have been best friends and the dream team pretty much ever since they first met as freshers in their horrible halls kitchen. 

Louis’ watching his onscreen self look beyond bemused when Harry admits that for the longest time he’d been convinced Wales was an island: “y’know ‘cause of the bridge, Lou. Like when we went that time, we drove over a long bridge. Six pounds it cost, as well!”. Onscreen Louis is now gently taking the piss out of Harry, and Louis is glad to see that he doesn’t come across mean at all. Real Louis giggles and squeezes Harry’s shoulder reassuringly, he knows that a lot of people automatically assume his best friend is stupid just because he’s stunningly beautiful and talks kind of slow. Louis’ always made it his mission to make sure Harry knows he’s more than what people assume. 

The show focuses on another couple for a bit, and then there’s an ad break. Louis rests his head on Harry’s shoulder and sighs happily when long arms wrap around him. Cuddling Harry is one of his favourite things to do.

“What do you think of us then, Haz?” Louis asks, mindlessly playing with a long loose strand of Hary’s hair.

“I think we’re great together and I’m kind of wishing they’d left out that bit where I made a tit out of myself about Wales.” Harry replies, laughing at himself.

“Nah, you didn’t seem like a tit, babe. Just like someone who doesn’t know all that much about geography. I’ve seen people say way worse stuff than that on here before.” Louis tells him, twirling that bit of Harry’s hair around his finger. Harry nods and gets his phone out.

“Shall we see what people are saying on twitter?” he suggests, and Louis nods.

Louis opens the app on his phone, for a moment lamenting the change of handle that had been necessary for the show. His old handle had been @rotten_tommotoes and he’d been rather fond of it as it had such a fun, sweet Harry story attached to it. Harry had stolen Louis’ phone around two years ago and changed his handle to this awful excuse for a joke or pun or whatever the fuck it was, and he’d been so completely tickled by his own horrible sense of humour that Louis had never had the heart or inclination to change it back. Luckily, it’s so completely shit that it probably won’t be stolen by any other Twitter users in the meantime so when this series ends he should be able to change it back.

Louis sees that Gogglebox is trending so clicks on the link to see what people have been saying about it rather than looking in his mentions first. Initially, he’s very proud to see upon scanning the page for handles that he and Harry are quite the topic of conversation. It’s then that he starts actually reading the tweets…

‘watching #gogglebox and the new gay couple are hilarious! @louis_g.box @giggleboxharry’ 

‘LOVE Louis and Harry on gogglebox their so cute together #gogglebox’

‘@louis_g.box and @giggleboxharry ‘s relationship is #goals #gogglebox’

‘@giggleboxharry really does live up to his name whenever Louis makes a joke! #gogglebox’

After about a minute of reading the (many) tweets about their apparent relationship, Louis looks over at Harry. Harry looks back and they both giggle.

“At least they don’t think either of us is straight, I reckon I’d feel like a complete failure if my gay aura didn’t translate onto the TV,” Louis comments, not sure what else to say.

“Our flamboyance transcends.” Harry replies, nodding wisely.

Neither mention the fact that the viewers all seem to think they’re together. 

-

It’s been a week, and neither Harry nor Louis have brought up the common misapprehension that they’re a couple. Neither have either of them said or done anything online or in the filming of the second episode to put that record straight at all. If anything, they appear even more besotted in the second episode. 

Louis’ a bit sad, though, because he’s watching alone this week and T.V just isn’t the same without Harry. Harry is staying at his mum’s for the night, and even though it would only be the one night Louis kind of already misses him a lot. He sends Harry a snapchat of his sad, lonely, pouty face, adds the puppy filter for ultimate emotional impact and captions it: ‘miss u bby’. Harry screenshots it immediately and responds with a similarly sad puppy filtered face and the caption ‘miss u too boo xx’. Louis screenshots Harry’s sweet, adorable, beautiful puppy face and sighs to himself.

This is the way they’ve always been, always very touchy-feely with each other, always very open about their mutual adoration for each other in amongst all the teasing and joking and doing completely stupid shit together. It’s been four years of this beautiful, intense, amazing friendship, and all Louis really knows for sure is that he loves Harry with all his heart and wants to be in his life for just about forever, really. He knows Harry’s it for him. There’s a part of him that just kind of knows that it will happen for them at some point, that one day he’ll blink and be in a committed relationship with his best friend and they’ll be happy and in love and probably have a cat and it will be perfect.

It’s then that it truly hits Louis.

He is in a committed relationship with his best friend and they are happy and in love, and have actually already looked into getting a cat quite soon. 

He should probably let Harry know when he gets back, should probably make sure they’re on the same page. 

-

Louis decides to meet Harry off the train on Saturday afternoon, feeling like their conversation really cannot and should not wait a moment longer than it needs to. It dawns on him as he locks the front door behind him and starts the short walk down the road to the train station that he should probably be nervous, should probably have reservations about declaring his love to his best friend. He doesn’t, though. It just… it is what it is. There’s this enormous inevitability he feels about all of it, a good kind of inevitability, one that feels like home.

Louis thinks about this inevitability, this weird kind of fated-ness, as he finishes the five-minute walk to the station. He gets there just as Harry’s train is getting in and stands on the platform, keeping an eye out for his best friend. He spots him in no time, all long hair and black skinnies and bright orange jumper. All wide green eyes and delighted smiles as he spots Louis.

It’s unclear whether they run or walk to each other, but it all happens very quickly and very slowly all at once. And they’re in each other’s arms and greeting each other and they’re holding on tighter than ever and the air smells like spring and hope and the start of something even more beautiful than what came before it.

Harry is the first to say it.

“I love you, Lou. Like proper in love, kind of love.” Harry says into Louis’ ear, and Louis just kind of melts into him, a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding since pretty much the day they’d met slips out of him.

“I love you too, Haz. So, so much. Like... I can’t tell you how much and-” 

And nothing. Because Harry stops him with a kiss, their first kiss. And it’s everything. It’s soft and it’s warm and it’s like coming home. It’s also fiery and real and almost desperate. Louis didn’t know it was possible to communicate so much everything into just one kiss, but it seems he and Harry have found a way.

The platform is empty by the time they stop clinging to each other quite so desperately. Harry takes Louis’ hand and they walk the short walk home together. There are no words, but every thirty seconds or so one or the other puts their linked hands to his lips and gives them a kiss. It’s stupid and it’s cheesy but it’s so much everything.

-

“So er- how did this happen” Harry laughs, gesturing to himself and Louis and the fact that they’d just spent the last twenty minutes or so just kissing and touching and exploring each other’s mouths.

“I realised last night that we’ve basically been boyfriends for the last four years, and that I really wanted that official title,” Louis shrugs, giving Harry a small peck on his plump, extra reddened lips before continuing, “and I also wanted the perks that come with being your boyfriend.”

“Perks? You mean like your cock in my-“ Harry begins, grinning cheekily before Louis places a hand over his mouth. Harry licks it, obviously, but this isn’t enough to make Louis remove it straight away. Never was.

“Don’t finish that sentence unless you plan on delivering.” Louis says sternly, pointing a finger at Harry and raising an eyebrow before removing his slobbery hand from Harry’s mouth and wiping it on Harry’s jeans.

“Don’t worry, Lou, I do fully intend to deliver.” Harry tells him, raising an eyebrow right back in what could perhaps be some attempt at being sexy.

“Oh really?” Louis teases, biting his lip. 

“Yes, really. Is now okay?” Harry replies, eyes roaming over Louis’ body.

“Now’s great. The real question is-“

“YOUR PLACE OR MINE!”

“Fuck you, Harry, why couldn’t you give me the line?”

“Am I not the king of puns and bad jokes?”

“Well you’re certainly not the god of sex at the rate you’re going!”

Harry obviously doesn’t have an answer to that, so just kisses Louis hard and pulls him upstairs. 

-

They spend the rest of the afternoon wrapped around each other in Harry’s bed. As the sun’s starting to go down and they’ve both woken up from an hour long nap, Louis kisses Harry gently on the shoulder and restarts their earlier conversation about when he knew.

“So when did you realise?” Louis asks, head resting on Harry’s chest, Harry’s arms encircling him. 

“I think I always knew but um… I was watching the show with my mum last night, right? And she just straight up asked me if we were together yet, and I was like no. So she asked me why not, and I realised I had absolutely no reason to give her.” Harry says, pulling Louis into his lap and kissing him gently on the nose. Louis pretends to squirm but actually just ends up wrapping both arms around Harry’s neck and pulling him in for another kiss. 

“We were always going to happen, weren’t we Harry Styles?” Louis says and Harry nods. Louis grins and just lies there still and silent for a moment in amazement and wonder at the boy beside him and everything that they were, are, and will be.

**Author's Note:**

> http://glitterlarries.tumblr.com


End file.
